Medical testing still awaits Thornton — and the words on his new nameplate in the locker room

A couple things to pass along, some of which will be in the print edition story.

* Joe Thornton, I’m advised, still hasn’t undergone the diagnostic testing — think MRI — that should make the extent of whatever lower body injury he has more clear. That’ll take place Monday.

But the plan going in is to have him accompany the team to Dallas for the road trip on Tuesday. I imagine that could change depending on the test results, but that is the plan.

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* I heard one Comcast report about Thornton showing up for treatments with a brace a reference elsewhere to a boot or soft cast that he was wearing. I also heard directly from an inside source that Thornton was walking around the locker room between treatments with no boot, brace, cane or crutches. Did I leave anything out? Don’t think so.

*I did expect to get access to Thornton today. Big star goes down, what he has to say is relevant. And, yes, I thought maybe we’d see for ourselves if there was a cast or boot or whatever involved. But the media was told to be there at 2 p.m. and Thornton apparently arrived two or three hours earlier. There was some uncertainty, in fact, if he was still around at 2 p.m.

Either way, word was relayed to him later that I wanted to talk and he relayed back: Not tonight.

*Marc-Edouard Vlasic did indeed tweak something in the third period against the Avalanche, but I’m told it’s minor and not worrisome.

* Manny Malhotra told us that his mom had been on his case to wear a visor, but the fact he skated tonight without one makes it pretty clear he’s not changing his ways after getting hit in the face by that puck in the final minute of play against Vancouver.

*The last time Thornton missed a game was in his final six weeks with the Bruins when he sat out three games with back problems. He returned to play on Oct. 20, 2005, and skated in 398 games since then before Sunday.

*Here’s how the lines shaped up today if you weren’t paying close attention:

Clowe-Pavelski-Setoguchi

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Heatley-Marleau-Mitchell

Malhotra-Couture-McGinn

Ortmeyer-Nichol-Staubitz

*The Sharks now have Monday off. Tuesday they practice at 10 a.m., then head to the airport and fly to Dallas.

*Finally, someone in the Sharks locker room has a sense of humor about whatever it is that ails Thornton. Hand-written on tape placed over the nameplate above his cubicle: The Big Softy.

David Pollak

David Pollak has been following the NHL forever and at the Mercury News as an editor or reporter since 1987. For almost a decade he wrote about the Sharks as the paper's Fan in the Stands before joining the sports department in 2001. He became the Sharks beat writer before the 2007-08 season and began this blog at that time. You can also follow him on Twitter at @PollakOnSharks.

DP,
That is really funny!!! Sounds like the new cone at Dairy Queen!!! Thanks for the news on Pickles and Manny. Some talk out here regarding those two.

Km

Any news on Pickles?

Km

Sorry missed that line.

TankGirl

Alaskan_Ice: “…the new cone at the Dairy Queen!!!”

LOL!

Thanks as always for the updates, DP…all the ones you could get, anyway. You’re the best! 🙂 Looking forward to more as it comes forth…

Good night, everyone!…and GO SHARKS!

TankGirl

Oh!…but before I go to sleep:

So glad that Demers was called up! Yea!…
So happy Seto’s getting his groove back…
So excited the guys won again…

So tired, and now going to sleep. 😉

Martin Brody

Joe is a sissy. He should have played against the Avs last night. Oh well, better safe than sorry I guess. Good luck in the playoffs, cause the sharks are going to need it. LOLOL

…

Martin Brody call me next time you play 398 NHL games in a row, mmkay?

Snow Shovel

#5 TankGirl – You were so close!! Here I just changed a few words for you:

So glad Demers called up
And Seto’s groove is back,
Excited that we won again,
And now, the sleep I lack!

by TankGirl

ice

dont feed the trolls, fellow WTC regulars

vonmerpf

Nice assist there Snow Shovel and ice is 100% corrrect, the best way to go rid of trolls is to ignore them. If no one responds, they will go away. It gets really lonely living in your parent’s basement and they are just trying to get some attention. Sad really…

Glad to hear that MEV is just a little dinged up and that Joe’s injury might not be as bad as everyone thought.

Even though I knew who won beforehand and watched the game on DVR delay (went snowboarding yesterday and got home late), it was an entertaining game to watch.

GO SHARKS!

Nick

The more I think about it, the more I think Malhotra might be right about not wearing a visor. That puck was coming at him pretty fast (understatement!), would it have shattered a visor or just deflected off it? If it shattered, a broken nose would be the least of his concerns right now…

Nick

Also, give Martin Brody some credit–At least he bothered to think up of a pseudonym that was fitting. Not like that other troll, Scott Peterson. Yeah, way to needle us, name yourself after some jag 60-70 miles away in another part of the state. It’d be like getting on the case of a Houstonian for what some jag did in Dallas… But at least Martin Brody is relevant.

4th Hanson Brother

Here’s hoping that the Sharks stick with the game plan that works. They always talk about a north/south game based on getting people in front of the opposing goaltender and throwing everything and the kitchen sink at the goal. That stuff works and it worked last night. They do that for a game or two and fall back into their bad habits. Maybe with Joe out they will be forced to play the game like they need to. The goals last night weren’t pretty style-wise but they were beautiful to see.

Mike R

Nick @11 – I’ve never seen nor heard of a shattered visor. And when I google on shattered hockey visor, all I find are stories about facial bones that were shattered.

RNK

That was a crazy deflection of Marleau`s stick and Manny is lucky that the shot was slowed by PM or he would have been in deep.

ice

yeah i cant imagine wearing a visor would make you get more hurt, if you got a slap shot in the face. personally id rather deal with that TINY possibility, than to take a puck to the bridge of my nose. that looked like it HURT!

KM

If it didn’t hit Marleau’s stick, it wouldn’t have hit Manny in the face…

KM

My comment at #17 was in response to RNK #15 haha

Johnny San Jose

Although Griess played well last night, I could certainly see the difference between him and Nabakov with regards to rebound control. Using a McClellan-ism… Nabby is certainly more polished than Griess. Attribute that lack of polish to not playing very much? I don’t think so. I just think Nabby is better.

Clowe has been one of the best players on the ice the last three weeks and Setoguchi has certainly stepped up his game.

I’m still convinced that the piece(s) that’ll take this team further than we’ve ever seen them go was the signing of Malhotra, Nichol and Ortmeyer. Quite a step up from Goc, Plihal, Grier, Moen, etc.

Heatley, Marleau… great stuff from great players

Pavelski — great stuff from a good player

Evilducks

Nick: I’ve never seen a visor shatter, maybe crack, but I don’t think that plastic is prone to shattering.

It would certainly have been in his best interest at that moment to have a visor, but Manny is awesome and I’m not about to start telling him what he needs to do with his game.

Unless it’s a yellow visor and then I demand he puts it on.

dk

#19, you are dead wrong about Greiss. Jimmy Howard was terrible, awful at the beginning of the season. he was considered a flop, and they had to go back to Osgood. when Ozzie slumped, they put Howard back in a couple months ago, and Howard, this time getting a long look, plenty of work, played great, showed confidence and polish, and controlled his rebounds, and is a true dependable goaltender who basically saved the wings season.

and Howard is older and has more previous NHL experience than Greiss does. it is outlandish for you to write off a kid goalie when he has NEVER had a real legitimate longterm chance to play in the NHL. until he does get months of playing time as the #1, you cannot determine ANYTHING about his ability or readiness, or make comparisons with nabokov.

RinkRat

Thanks DP for the updates on JT and MEV. Hoping like everyone for good news later today. I will be checking back often…

RR

y

Non-factor or not, the thing that worries me about Thorntons injury is this: He’s played 398 games straight, bruised and banged up at times, I’m sure. I think the reality is that he’s out for a while. Any time a guy is wearing a brace it’s probably not good, and the fact that press hasn’t seen him either….not good.

icehawkey

greiss’ rebound control would get better with more play. its partially a confidence thing. when the coaches only let you play every other eclipse you arent going to be the most confident or polished goalie. they wont even go to greiss if nabby gives up 3 erly and the team needs a saprk. tmac only pulls him if game is out of reach and griess comes in to mop up so nabbys numbers dont get worse.meanwhile nabby gets tired and worn down. if nabby gets hurt in the playoffs griess is gonna be petrified because he was never trusted enough to get significant minutes in the regular season. none of the recent cup winning teams have had a goalie that played as much as nabby. i think the last goalie to playlike 65-70 reg season games and win the cup was brodeur. nabby is no brodeur in that martin already had a cup and confidence and knew how worn down you get after 4 rounds of playoff series after a long reg season. i was hoping we would have picked up turco or someone else to push nabby or to go to if he falters in the playoffs. detroit always has a capable backup for just that reason.

Evilducks

Last year the Red Wings had Ty Conklin as a backup… since when has he ever been a competent post season goalie?

Johnny San Jose

dk — wow! I didn’t know there was that much love for Griess out there. Maybe it’s more of a distain for Nabby?

You stated: “until he does get months of playing time as the #1, you cannot determine ANYTHING about his ability or readiness, or make comparisons with nabokov.”

My response: Oh really? I believe I can have what ever opinion I choose. My opinion is exactly what I stated. I recently had the chance to speak with Hahn, Remenda, Rusinowski and Baker and all with a collective sigh would love to have Boucher back here instead of Griess. They are “experts” and think that Boucher is “heads above” the Sharks current backup. I would say that Nabakov is better than Boucher, hence Nabakov is better than Griess.

Just give Couture a chance… with Marleau’s playing time and on the top line, he’d be way better than Marleau… Yeah right.

JLofty

Malhotra is a crazy man. I am in awe of his toughness coming back 20 hours after breaking his nose. That is a tough, crazy man.
Wow.

Johnny San Jose

icehawkey — McClellan couldn’t care less bout Nabakov’s numbers. As long as they’re winning and he’s playing well, he’s free to do what ever he chooses.

My opinion is that Griess will be far from petrified if thrown into the playoff mix. He’s descent. He’s just not a good as Nabakov.

vonmerpf

@icehawkey -> We couldn’t pick up another goalie like Turco because of the salary cap. Nabby likes to play a lot of games and gets better the more he plays (that Kazakhstani work ethic). And I think Griess will be just fine as the backup goalie – he will see it as an opportunity if he has to take Nabby’s place, much like Nabby did in his first season when Steve Shields got hurt.

GP

Johnny San Jose,

How dare you write off Logan Couture? 😉

GP

“My opinion is that Griess will be far from petrified if thrown into the playoff mix. He’s descent. He’s just not a good as Nabakov.”

How many times today are you gonna throw Greisser under the buss? 😉

ice

“it is outlandish for you to write off a kid goalie when he has NEVER had a real legitimate longterm chance to play in the NHL.”
—-
i think there is a lot of truth to that statement.

I’m wondering why the delay in getting diagnosed? Is it a case of them saying ‘let’s wait and see how it feels after a couple of days’, or is it because of some issue performing an MRI with all of that swelling? (does anyone know if an MRI is possible with swelling?) It’s been 2 days and still no medical evaluation. At this point of the season, wouldn’t the team want to know the status of one of their top players A.S.A.P?
I guess at this point, there’s no rush to have him back in the regular season. Let him heal and hopefully he’ll be back for the playoffs. I’ll bet the Yotes are licking their chops thinking this is their open door to 2nd seed.

GP

Now twice for Cooter…your bus is busy eh? 🙂 😉 LOL!!!

Johnny San Jose

Well ice, I didn’t write anyone off. Nabakov is playing for a reason. Griess is the # 2 in an organization that is known for its goalies. I’m hoping he developes as well as Nabakov did.

ice

sorry johnny, my agreement to dk’s statement wasnt directed at you personally. i just agree with it in general. however: “Nabby is certainly more polished than Griess. Attribute that lack of polish to not playing very much? I don’t think so. I just think Nabby is better.” that does sound to me like you write off greiss a bit.

if nabby says playing MORE helps keep him in the “zone”, then wouldnt that be true for someone who’s only played 10 or so games in an entire season? i would absolutely say the lack of polish from greiss is due to lack of playing time. all that said, he’s the back up goalie, and thats his job. nabby is the #1, and we all know the team will live and die by his goal tending to the end of this season.

Johnny San Jose

Got it ice… I’m fully aware that Griess would play better if he faced more than the practice squad.

Puke — No throwing under the bus here. Just stating an “opinion.” Everyone’s got one and something else, eh?

GP

ice,

I don’t think there is anything that JSJ wrote that writes off Greiss or Cooter for that matter. I initially didn’t think he implied it and I didn’t infer it.

I simply looked at it as where JSJ thinks Greiss is at in his development.

Evilducks

BASS: MRI’s can see through inflated flesh just fine, I’m sure they could even get an accurate picture of any injury Kyle Wellwood would suffer with one.

Evilducks

Am I the only one that thought Couture was one of our best forwards during the losing streak and he’s still playing really well right now? He may not have a ton of points but he skates his tail off every shift, goes hard to the net, creates turnovers and chances every shift he’s on the ice.

That kid is going to be huge for our bottom lines come the playoffs if we are going to have any kind of post season success.

Evilducks

On a completely separate topic. This Saturday Alex Stalock recorded a 46 save shutout to increase his AHL rookie record to 37 wins in a season. He also rang a shot off the post in the dying minutes on a bid for his first professional goal.

3 more wins to reach 40 in the AHL, something a goalie hasn’t done since Ryan Miller…

Just saying, the future looks pretty bright.

SawtoothGrin

What happens if Nabby goes down in the playoffs? Tell me folks won’t be second-guessing the decision to play Nabby game in and game out. I might spend a couple of regular season wins to buy some insurance on that front and get Greiss a little more game time.

BeastlyChicken

I’m right with you ED, I’ve been watching Stalock since his days UMD, was so happy we picked him up. If we don’t trade him away, I think he will be or #1 in a couple years.

Couture is going to be a beast. Awesome AHL year, and always looks hungry for the puck, something some of our experienced forwards sometimes lack. I doubt he will ever see the AHL again.

Evilducks

There’s no way they send Couture back down, he’s here for the duration. McGinn is the only one I can see being shipped, but I doubt even that happens with the proximity of the playoffs creeping up.

If they trade Stalock before he see’s significant NHL time I’ll line up with the Chicken Little’s in calling for DW’s head.

Stalock certainly gives the Sharks some options no matter what happens in the post season.

Sharkattax

Shhhhhhhh…..if Nabby’s not re-signed in the off-season (a distinct possibility as DW’s got to come up with some big bucks to retain Marleau) I for one would not be too upset to see a tandem of Stalock and Greiss in 2011—give them split time to get a year of NHL experience before next season’s playoffs…but that’s getting wayyyyyyy ahead of this year’s focus…Nabby does play so much better when he’s the undisputed #1 and getting almost all the minutes—the decision has already been made to ride him all the way this year—let’s hope its a good one!
BTW, before Boucher’s win yesterday, he was something like 5-15 on the year with Philly.